NIGERIA, South Africa and Egypt have the highest emerging markets foreign reserves in Africa, according to Economy Post’s findings. Of the 10 emerging markets foreign reserves surveyed by the newspaper, South Africa’s reserves rank first, Egypt’s come second, while Nigeria’s are third.

While South Africa‘s latest foreign exchange reserves figures stand at $72.07 billion, according to the nation’s Reserve Bank, Egypt’s are estimated at $50.21 billion, according to the Central Bank of Egypt, with Nigeria’s ranking 3rd at $45.04 billion, according to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

Kenya ranks fourth, with its reserves estimated at $12.030 billion by the Central Bank of Kenya. Ghana ranks 5th at $11.41 bllion reserves, while Ethiopia is 6th at $5.9 billion reserves. Zambia’s reserves are 7th at $5.2 billion, while Ivory Coast is 8th at $4.7 billion.

Sources: CBN, Reserve Bank of SA,Central Bank of Kenya, Central Bank of Egypt, etc

Similarly, Botswana’s reserves stand at $3.4 billion, whereas Rwanda’s are estimated at $2.2 billion. All the nations surveyed are classified as emerging markets, and the estimates are based on their central banks’ latest reserves releases.

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While the CBN updates its reserves information almost every day, central banks in other nations do not provide notes on their reserves regularly.

What are foreign reserves?

Foreign exchange reserves are simply assets denominated in a foreign currency held by a central bank. Investopedia says that these reserves “are used to back liabilities and influence monetary policy,” noting thatfForeign exchange reserves can include banknotes, deposits, bonds, treasury bills, and other government securities.”

Reserves are to nations what money in the bank and other invested assets are to individuals. Reserves are often kept in foreign currencies, mostly in the United States dollars, in order to guard against vulnerabilities such as exchange rate fluctuations, galloping inflation, among others.

CBN building Nigeria’s reserves

Latest data released by the CBN show that Nigeria’s foreign reserves stand at $45.04 billion. The nation last recorded such numbers on July 23, 2019, when reserves stood at $45.04 billion.

In November, the CBN Governor, Mr Olayemi Cardoso, said the reserves had hit $46.7bn as of November 14, 2025.

Represented by the Deputy Governor in charge of Economic Policy, Dr Muhammad Abdullahi, Mr Cardoso said at the 20th Anniversary of the Monetary Policy Department that the reserves had hit new high level, the first since 2018.

“Foreign reserves have risen to $46.7bn as of November 14, 2025, providing 10.3 months of import cover in goods and services, supported by sustained inflows and renewed investor participation across various asset classes.

“This accretion reflects investor confidence in our policies leading to improved oil receipts, stronger balance of payments, and renewed foreign portfolio inflows,” Mr Cardoso said.

During an engagement with the Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and Other Financial Institutions on December 4, Mr Cardoso had reiterated the surge in reserves, noting that the position provided 10.3 months of import cover, an achievement he attributed to renewed investor confidence and improved foreign exchange stability.

He revealed a sharp rise in diaspora inflows and stressed that remittances had increased by 66.7 percent, up from roughly $200 million monthly to about $600 million in recent months.

Naira vs other currencies

Meanwile, the naira on Monday maintained its stability across segments of the foreign exchange (FX) market. At the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM), the dollar was quoted at N1,451.86 compared to N1,450.42 on Friday.

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Nigeria’s currency is stronger than several currencies in the world, including the Vietnamese dong. Dong exchanges for N1 at VND 17.535. But one United States dollar can buy products worth 26,455 VND in Vietnam as against goods worth N1,497 in Nigeria.

The naira is stronger than the currency used by the people of Lao People’s Democratic Republic known as the Laotian Kip (LAK). One naira exchanges for 14.49 LAK, with one dollar swapping for 21,681.02 LAK.

Indonesia rupiah exchanges for N0.091 but goes for 16,401.67 IDR to a dollar. Analysis shows that one naira can buy 8.61 Syrian pound (SYP). A dollar exchanges for 11,530 SYP as against naira’s 1,497. Similarly, N1 exchanges for 8.25 Uzbekistani Som (UZS) as against 12,350.22 UZS to a dollar. On the other hand, the Nigerian currency exchanges for 8.50 Guinea Franc(GNF), but the dollar exchanges for 8,676.04 GNF.

More so, 1 Nigerian currency can buy goods worth 4.77 Paraguayan guarani (PYG) but a dollar can buy goods valued at 7,108 PYG. Counterfeiting has been a major problem of the currency. Its people are still poor, though the poverty rate has declined in the last decade.